A New Start
by raincaster
Summary: Look, I never asked to be the daughter of an Olympian hero...


Look, I never asked to be the daughter of an Olympian hero.

I mean, I love my dad; he's been my everything since Mom died when I was three years old.

But it's dangerous. There are still monsters, titans, and gods out there who would just love to send Dad to Hades, or worse, Tartarus.

Not to mention having any sort of mythical blood in you is just asking for trouble, especially the mythical blood of two demigod parents.

So I basically have no hope for a normal, mortal life. But that's okay, because it's my own crazy life.

It really all started when Chiron came to tell Dad about camp. Chiron was an older, but pretty cool, guy who did papa wheelies in his wheel chair. Apparently, that's not at all a common thing for him to do, because the first time my dad walked in on a particularly spectacular performance (give me a break, I was five) his jaw just fell over in amazement as Chiron spotted him and gently lowered his chair, a slight blush coloring his checks. Dad had muttered something about "party ponies getting to him" whatever that meant. Chironwas one of my favorite teachers; he'd quiz me over Greek mythology and the Greek language. He'd go over the battle techniques that Dad had recently taught me (hey what can I say, Dad and I have always loved fencing). He'd nod in my dad's direction as he is doing this to, as if assuring him of something. And Dad would give his small wary smile, his proud green gaze steadily on me… but I digress.

Anyway, Chiron had come over to talk to Dad about camp. A camp that apparently my dad had gone to as a child. I had not known this, so naturally it perked my interest. What camp had he gone to and why not tell me? And why was Chiron talking about it to him now…?

"… Need a swords master," Chiron was saying in the other room, his serious brown gaze resting on Dad. "And isn't Olivia about the age you were your first year of camp?"

Twelve, my dad had been twelve when he had first gone to this camp. Interesting.

"Look Chiron, I – I just haven't told her yet, okay. Annabeth and I had wanted her to live as normally as long as possible…"

_Tell me what?_ I inched closer to the open doorway, curious. _What did he mean "live as normally as long as possible?_

"Annabeth should've known better, and so should you …"

Dad hands went up in the air, his reply sounding defeated. "Yeah I know, I know." He chucked softly, but it held no humor. It sounded tired. "Mom and Dad told me the same thing; Dr. Chase and Athena told me the same thing…"

_Grandma and Grandpa knew too? And since when did Dad call Paul Dad? And Athena who?_

"They were right, Perseus –" I winced for my dad; it must have been really serious if Chiron was using his full name – "How long have you moving around to avoid danger?"

We did move around a lot, or at least more than most families. We've gone from the New England states to down south to the Midwest. And we were always around some sort of nature, usually with a body of water… wait, avoiddanger_? _What_ danger_?

"She will be safe at Camp Half- Blood and so will you. You won't have to move every year, and Olivia will have a far larger family then she will ever thought possible."

I frowned. Camp _Half- Blood_? What kind of camp name was that? We'd be safe from what? I had a large family?

I made myself visible in the doorway and cleared my throat. "Camp sounds like fun Dad."

It was humorous to see two grown men startle, each turning to me with a sheepish yet wary look in their eyes. Chiron said something, but for once in my life, I didn't pay attention. I stared my father down. I have never noticed before how just plain tired he looked; his usually bright green eyes that held dancing waves now were darkening calm seas. His body posture, usually relaxed yet alert, was now limp, heavy. The only thing that was normal was his messy black hair with a single strand of gray.

I once asked him why he had that gray hair; he's had it for as long as I can remember. He said it was from carrying the weight of the world. I'd always thought he was exaggerating… now I wasn't so sure.

"How much have you heard," even his voice croaked as if it were fatigued from use.

"Enough to know that you have been keeping secrets from me." It came out sharper, more accusingly then I had meant it to come out.

"It seems as if I'm intruding," Chiron looked at me; his dark warm brown eyes seemed to understand my sudden need. "Think about what I said, Percy. Tell Olivia the truth. Come back home." He started to wheel towards the door and I started to go with him to open it for him.

"Chiron…"

"I can get the door child. Go to your father. He needs you." It was a gentle, yet firm command. I nodded and took Dad's hand. Led him the living room. Sat him on the couch. Somewhere in all of that heard Chiron open and close the door. Sat by Dad's side and curled up so that I could fit into his strong embrace. Safe. No matter what secrets Dad held, I knew that with his arms around me, I was safe.

"Daddy," I hadn't called him that since I was eight, "Are – are we in danger?"

I felt him hug me tighter, "You know I would never let any harm come to you, right?"

"Dad just tell me."

"You know all of the bedtime stories I've told you?"

I wriggled out of his embrace so I could look right at him. "You mean all the Greek myths?" I've always wondered why he never just told me the classical Cinderella.

"Yep all those myths..." He sighed and looked me straight in the eye. "Those myths aren't just myths, they're – well they're real, Liv."

I stared at him. Really I was waiting for the "gotcha!" moment that Dad will occasionally pull on me. Even if I had thought that it'd would've been a stupid time to do it. Because honestly, what did he really expect me to think?

"They're real?" I echoed, disbelief coloring the last syllable. Dad hadn't changed his seldom, wary expression yet, which meant that this wasn't a joke. "As in Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades? Furies, hellhounds and Cyclops real?"

I watched him roll his bronze pen in his hand as he gave me a stern look that clearly told me to stop while I was ahead. "Yes Olivia. And careful, names have power."

I wanted to believe him. I really, really did. But I couldn't. A myth was called a myth for a reason. It was a story. A story that explained why things were before there was science. But Dad said… it was my father! He comforted me after nightmares. He cleaned up my scrapes and bruises. He had caught my throw up in his hands one time when I suddenly got really sick. He made me laugh, he had let me cry. He made the boundaries and gave out a fair punishment if I crossed them. He was just simply my dad, so I really wanted to believe him. But…

"Let's say they were real," I finally said, not going to call him crazy, but not ready to really accept what he had said. "How does any of the Greek myt – beings – relate to us?"

"Interesting choice of words," Dad gave a small grin, the waves in his ocean green eyes seemed to begin to move once more. He rested a hand on my shoulder. "Think of the water that's going through our pipes at this moment."

"Uh?"

"Water. Just think of water. Nothing else."

Needless to say, I found this kind of strange. But I trusted him, even if he seemed a little out there at the moment. I closed my eyes. Focused on nothing and therefore everything. Dad's touch seemed heavier, warmer. Our breathing seemed louder, heavier. It was uneven at first, but within seconds we were breathing in and out together. A wave roared in my ears.

"Liv," Dad's voice seemed far away as though he was miles away, not just right beside me. "Open your eyes and take a look."

And so I did, slowly as if waking from a deep sleep, the wave still roaring in my head.

Until I noticed our living room floor was now starting to flood.

"DAD!"

His smile grew wider. Had I mentioned it was nice flooring? Laminate to be exact.

The wave in my head silenced and the flood stopped.

"That was all you," Dad grinned. "I just helped by calling the sea inside of you. You're mother and I have gods as a parent.

"Sea… Poseidon is god of the sea."

"He's also my father and your paternal grandfather."

"Oh," I really didn't know what else to say.

"Olivia Marine… that's why you're middle name is Marine. It was to honor him."

"So that would make you…" I trailed off.

"A demigod or a half- blood."

_Camp Half – Blood_. "And that would make me… Wait, both you and Mom, demigods?"

"Yep"

I thought I could hear the mechanics in my brain clicking slowly, trying to piece this together.

"I'm assuming Olivia was to honor Mom's godly parent?"

"_Goddess_ parent," he laughed as though he found something amusing.

"Goddess," I repeated to myself. That limited my list of possible divine parents for Mom. Olivia… goddess…"

"Think of the stories," hinted Dad.

"Olivia… olives – olives… Athena?"

Pride glowed in his eyes as he nodded. "You are truly you're mother's daughter. Yes, Athena is your maternal grandmother. She rocked you to sleep once in the middle of the night when you were still an infant. When I saw what seemed like stranger holding you I almost chopped her head off with Riptide before I recognized her."

"You almost chopped off the head of the goddess of battle and wisdom?" I muttered, disbelief still weaved into my voice. "And I thought Athena was a maiden goddess, so…"

"Oh she is. I asked your mom about once; never was able to look at her quite the same way again," he chuckled at the memory.

I knew my lips were now in a thin line as my tongue ran over them. My dad was apparently the son of Poseidon and my mom had been the daughter of Athena. I repeated one of my former questions. "So what does this make me?"

"Chiron was right. We should have never left camp." Dad's smile fell once more, grief filled it once more. "But Annabeth and I thought we could handle it. Just as long as we were together. And then we had you and your mother and I couldn't have been anymore happier…"

"You never did tell me how she died," I pointed out suddenly. "And – it has something to do with – with all this, does it? With you guys being demigods."

"We're going to camp," his grief is now covered by the sudden determination in his eyes.

"How did Mommy die?" I repeated, my voice higher, louder. I had a million other questions beside my already asked unanswered questions, but this was the most important one to me at the moment.

"We'll talk in the car, I promise. Pack your stuff."

"But…"

"No buts, Olivia Marine."

"… what about school, our house, my friends, our family…"

"One last move Liv. I promise."

I gulped. Our conversation had seemed to have moved all over the place, just like my jumbled thoughts. Suddenly Greek myths aren't just real, I was a part of them. I wasn't totally convinced, but it was my father.

_Who I suddenly didn't know…_

"You'll tell me everything in the car?"

"Yes."

"Our last move? In other words, we'll stay there longer than a year?"

"Longer Liv, that's the idea of _last_ move. Now pack."

I went across the house and into my room. Looked around to see my small library (four woven baskets filled with books and notebooks).A small chest filled with clothes and stuffed animals. My laptop on a paper covered desk. My baskets, my chest, my laptop, I had everything I needed, except…

I got down on my hands and knees and reached under my small twin bed and felt around for the loose floorboard I knew was underneath it. Pulled up on it and pushed it aside as I grabbed for a small box that was hidden in the floor.

It was a picture. My parents as teenagers, arm in arm smiling right at me. Dad looked younger, happier as he held up a bronze sword clearly prepared for a strike. Mom too looked young and happy as she held a large bronze knife at her side and her storm gray eyes peered out from thick, messy blonde curls. With the picture was a necklace with twelve clay beads, each having a different shape and meaning. I didn't know then what the meanings were, Dad had only told me that the necklace had been Mom's. Untangling the strings and beads in my hand, I placed it around my neck. That way, it wasn't going to be just Dad and me moving to this camp.

Dad had promised to tell me everything in the car, and that this would be our last move. And I was excited. I wasn't sure where to I was going but it was someplace good, that I could tell. It was going to be a place of safety and adventure. And it was a place that was going to tell me more of my parents and history, I was sure of it! I wasn't sure if I totally believed what I've been told so far, but that was okay. And little did I know, it would be the start of a crazy yet amazing life.

I buried my picture and laptop safe in my chest and call across the house, "HEY DAD, I'M READY!"

AN: As always tell me what you think. I'm not quite sure if this is a multi chapter story, a one shot or a series of one shots quite yet. And I may go back revise this later… It's just an idea I've had in my head for a while.


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